Oh No! Darby is Sick

Tuesday morning I watched my chickens in their indoor condo and I noticed that my Polish was hunched down in a corner. I just thought she waslaying an egg and I went about setting up their outdoor run. It ahd been raining for a few days and they have been inside since Thursday night.I put them all outside at 11 am. I checked on them at 12:30 and she was hunched down in the grass. I looked at 1 PM and she was in the sameplace. I went out at that time picked her up and brought her inside. I held her on my lap and she just settled right in and flew asleep.Normally she'd want to get down or struggle a bit but she did nothing.I put her on a blanket and covered her with a towel and she stayed likethat for 30 mins. She layed and egg in the morning, ate mealworms, oystershells and her crumbles. She did have a yellowishgreen and white watery poop.

By Thursday she wasn't getting any better. I couldn't take it anymore. I may not have money to pay the cable bill but I took her to the vet anyway. I brought her to the Medical Center for Birds in Oakley California. They say they treat chickens all the time and Darby was their third chicken of the day. A man even brought in a Hawk, an Owl and a Falcon and we got tosee them. I really liked their facility too. Everything for birds and no wet dog and pee smell as in other animal vets. Even a scale with a perch. Nice people too.

And three hundred dollars later she got X-rays, fluid, pain meds anda recheck visit next week for a reproductive track problem. Oh my god what have I done! Yes I love my chickens and I have always been more fawned of Darby but $300! And I don't have that kind of money rightnow. I did use the money I was saving for their diapers but that was only $50 of it. I am going to be putting my old jeep on Craig's list. I hope it sales fast. On the brighter side Darby seems to be feeling better with her fluids and pain meds. I got her home after an hour in traffic and she started eating a bit. She even was laying down and eating. I'm going to give her some food mixed with yogurt tonight after the kids go tobed.

She still looks a bit uncomfortable but she is eating and the vet said I needed to get her to eat in the next 24 hours or she may not make it. Dr. Olsen explained that she has some soft tissue abnormalities in her reproductive track that maybe the cause of her troubles. Darby's first two eggs were soft shelled eggs but I didn't remember to tell him that until after I saw the X-rays. If she gets better maybe she'll start laying gold eggs for me. LOL well it would help!